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Sunday, March 28, 2010

James Cameron asks Lula to reconsider the project of Belo Monte

In Manaus, Cameron said that the environmental and social impacts of the plant need to be prioritized by the Brazilian government. "I beg to President Lula to reconsider," said Cameron.Please note: This article is in Portuguese.Photo courtesy of Kathy Willens/AP

James Cameron, director of the film with a strong environmental appeal, entered the controversy over the construction of a hydroelectric dam on the Xingu River and asked the Brazilian president to reconsider the project

By Karla Spotorno, special report from Manaus

James Cameron Director of the film “Avatar” asked President Lula to reconsider the Belo Monte hydroelectric project, in Pará. In a lecture at the International Forum for Sustainability, in Manaus, Cameron said that the environmental and social impacts of the hydroelectric need to be prioritized by the Brazilian government. "I beg President Lula to reconsider," said Cameron, who learned of the plant by reports of Amazon Watch. "I've been in Brazil for 24 hours. But I personally went to the region to better understand the project”, said Cameron, who said he was not an activist, but an artist concerned with "mother nature ".

The director of Avatar argued that there is a disconnect between the economy and the environment. He said that rapid growth has become the most important value to humanity, even if it results in the degradation of soil, rivers, oceans, trees. "It's time for the world to wake up and start a green revolution," said Cameron.

Background

Cameron says the worst situation in the world is the denial of global warming and the deterioration of the environment and natural resources caused by man. He said Avatar was made to combat the denial of the problems. "We created a visceral and emotional appeal to address the excessive exploitation of nature," he said. "Our intention is that by the end of the film, viewers feel like part of the people Na'Vi and as defenders of that planet."

As soon as he began his talk to the 560 executives and entrepreneurs, Cameron stressed that he never thought to shoot Avatar in the Amazon. The idea came to be a proposal by the governor of Amazonas, Eduardo Braga. "This would have caused a great impact on the forest," he said. "Avatar did not cut a single leaf in filming because it was made entirely in the studio and with computer graphics." He added that Avatar 2 will show the ocean and tropical forest. Like Avatar I, everything will be filmed in the studio. The Canadian director, who has 30 years of residence in the United States, said he would accept filming a documentary in Brazil about the forest, but not a fiction film. "You do not want me to drag the team and trucks and equipment to the middle of the forest, do you?!"